Letter to the Editor: "Where is the Justice?"

To Whom It May Concern, 

It is wonderful to live in a land where there are laws to protect the common people from injustice. But we don’t live in such a land if a wealthy developer and his attorney can request and receive approval to ignore the zoning and usage regulations right in front of the representatives for the hundreds of potentially-impacted families who stand in fierce opposition to it. The people are making pleas, some of them in tears, to stop this developer from shirking the laws and putting residential units above his commercial properties on Speedwell Avenue bordering the Sherman/Fairchild Neighborhood. Yet it is looking like this developer may well be granted permission to do so, despite the laws which state that he cannot. 

It seems like such a travesty I think, and someone correct me if I’m wrong, the purpose of our laws and zoning and the boards that oversee them, is to do what’s best for Morris Township.  But what is Morris Township if not the people who live there? The people have spoken, loud and clear. The people do not want their local government (the ones elected and appointed to serve them) to push aside the laws (the ones designed to protect them) that can help prevent rental apartments from springing up atop the small commercial venues that border their neighborhood.   It will add population density and traffic, turn Sherman Ave. into more of a parking lot than it already is, and make our neighborhood a more dangerous place for our children. 

My Open Question To Morris Township Zoning and Board of Adjustment Officials:WHERE IS THE JUSTICE IN ONE MAN’S GREED BEING GIVEN MORE WEIGHT THAN MORRIS TOWNSHIP RESIDENTS’ RIGHTS TO PROTECTION UNDER THE LAW? 

The Law should be on our side. Our rights, the sanctity of our homes and the safety of our children should be more important than one man’s desire to milk more revenue out of his commercial property. 

The Facts, laid out quite simply are these: 

THE RESIDENTS ARE LOOKING TO:-Have the laws that are designed to protect them enforced-Protect the biggest investment most of them will ever make-Their homes-Maintain the family-friendly character of their neighborhood.-Help stem the already-emerging problem of overcrowded on-street parking-Prevent an increase in traffic that will put the safety of their children in jeopardy. 

MR. LOBOZZO IS LOOKING TO: -Get Richer 

If the Township board of adjustment grants Mr. Lobozzo the right to ignore our laws, something is seriously wrong with our system, and every single resident of Morris Township should be concerned if not outraged.  

Sincerely, 

Eric Ruhalter, Morris Township